While the most notable attraction of the game of golf is the pitting of individual strengths and skills in ultimately sinking the golf ball into the hole, the game possesses a second, and to some golfers, more compelling attraction; the rejuvenating effect of strolling outdoors, across manicured, sometimes beautifully designed courses, accompanied by friends, family, and/or associates.
Unfortunately, the satisfaction of such occasions can be severely curtailed, if not completely marred by a poorly balanced golf bag. The frustration generated by an off-balance and unruly bag can ruin a relaxed mindset, interrupt concentration, and even waste precious recreation time if the bag is so unbalanced as to spill its contents, or repeatedly slip on the shoulder.
Nearly all bags include a strap, usually permanently attached along the spine of the golf bag. Some bags provide an optimal balance point for the carrying strap by the position at which the carry strap is connected to the bag. One such bag is set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 4,796,752, issued to the present inventor on Jan. 10, 1989. While providing an optimal strap connection point, the straps are adjustable by a well-known arrangement of buckles. Such buckle arrangements, however, can be very time consuming to adjust. In addition, such arrangement have limited flexibility due to the permanent attachment of the straps at both ends. The actual positions at which the strap is attached to the bag are not adjustable, providing only limited balance adjustments by shortening or lengthening the straps. Golf is not a sport requiring particular height or body mass, and so golfers' sizes vary enormously, yet the prior art provides only limited balance adjustments for such a wide range of people.
None of the prior art effectively provides a golf bag design that successfully addresses the above mentioned concerns.